Cole Young (Lewis Tan) is a $200 a gig MMA fighter until he is told that his birthmark means he will be one of Earth’s champions in the greatest fighting tournament of any world. Mortal Kombat! 

Based on the infamous video game this film endeavours to portray the brutal action of the game far more closely than the previous two attempts at film versions of the game. 

Opening in feudal Japan with a brilliantly choreographed action sequence that sets the tone for the film I had high hopes for what might follow. 

The plot exposition is delivered reasonably well. Earth has lost the last nine tournaments and one more loss will result in Outworld winning control. Earth’s champions share birthmarks that grant them power and they must find each other and their powers before Outworld’s champions destroy them. The whole idea is unlikely to hold water if relied upon but it frankly should be enough to work with if the film could live up to its opening sequence. Which I am sure you know means that this is not going to be a flawless victory. 

In fact there are two huge flaws. Firstly, our hero, the only character not taken from the games is painfully dull. Secondly, after a really great opening third the film decides to lumber us with an even duller training section which goes on forever. Either side of this training section though are some brilliant and gruesome fight scenes with plenty of characters, phrases and fatalities that will keep fans of the games very happy. 

Over the course of the film you will get to see incredibly fun and faithful versions of Jax (Mehcad Brooks), Kano (Josh Lawson), Sonya Blade (Jessica McNamee), Sub-Zero (Joe Taslim), Scorpion (Hiroyuki Sanada) and many more. 

If you are a fan of the game or have any nostalgia for it I assure you that the boring middle section can be overcome. If not, aside from some pretty gruesome deaths I would suggest you skip it.